The Antwaan Randle El mystery
There might only be one thing to complain about from the Redskins' win over the Raiders, if you give the offensive line a pass: the punt returning of Antwaan Randle El. He had two returns, zero yards, one fumble, and one awful moment when he let a punt roll for like 307 yards. Here are three points of view on the lingering mystery of why he keeps that particular job.
Brian Mitchell
"See, I have to go to Jim Zorn," B-Mitch said on Comcast SportsNet's Postgame Live. " "Because Jim Zorn has stated many times, Randle El is back there because of his sure hands. We've watched him drop one off the face mask, one off the chest, and he let numerous balls hit the ground. The first sin as a punt returner is to let the ball hit the ground. Pete Rodriguez--one of the greatest [coaches] I've ever had, Wayne Sevier, all those guys would lose their minds."
The stats
Randle El's 3.9 yards-per-return average is 62nd in NFL.
And sure, there are people in front of him whose averages are inflated by having just one or two returns, so let's install a five-return minimum.
Now Randle El ranks 49th in the league.
Also, his three fumbles on punt returns are tied for second in the NFL, though most of the people he's tied with have significantly more returns.
Also, his 18 fair catches are second in the NFL. The one guy with more, Indianapolis's T.J. Rushing, has 19 fair catches, but is averaging 6.2 yards per return and hasn't yet fumbled.
If you combine these stats, I think it's pretty easy to argue that he's the least effective regular punt returner in the league.
Joe Theismann
"In every sunny day there's usually one little cloud that sits out there, and for us, it's Antwaan Randle El returning punts," Theismann said on his Monday morning ESPN 980 show. "He averages 3.9 yards a punt return. I will say this in all humility: I could do that. Ok? As a matter of fact, I have done it. And I've done it better. I catch the football. This isn't an I thing, this is an I don't know what's going on in management, when it comes to putting Antwaan Randle El back returning punts. He dropped a second-down pass, hit him right in the hands. Muffed a punt again. You know, in a game that was close, we would all be clamoring about what Antwaan did. Now it just sort of gets overlooked....It's amazing to me, you cut Shaun Suisham because he misses two field goals, and yet you insist on allowing someone that has no production whatsoever to do a job returning punts."
That was in the first segment. He came back to the theme at least two more times.
"This is a complete football team, except for one element in special teams," Theismann said at one point.
"My God, how bad is Antwaan Randle El returning punts," he said another time. "Just FYI, in 1974 I returned punts and averaged 10.4 yards. Here's Antwaan Randle El the last two years: 6.5 in 08, 3.9 in 09. He's at 10.4 [combined]. I would never say that I could do something better than someone, but I can. Or I could, let's put it that way. And again, that to me is the biggest mystery that the Redskins have, that they're faced with. Why do you continue to make this decision? As a coaching staff, when you make this decision, what you're doing is you are sending a message to the other players that you are not putting the best people out there to do their job. And that is not the job of a coaching staff. And again, this is not personal. This has nothing to do with him. Terrific player, hard-working guy, great team guy. It's just that as a punt returner, Antwaan Randle El is not getting the job done. My golly, you cut Shaun Suisham for not getting the job done, the least you can do is find somebody back there who can make an impact on special teams."
My own addition to this onslaught of hate: yeah. Agreed.